Friday, December 5, 2014

My Two Month Report

Dear Dad,

They've got really cool looking mountains here in Tucson!

This one is called Mount Lemon

Hey! How's my totally awesome Father doing? You asked me to give you a 2 month report on my mission, so here it is!
They say that the days are long but the weeks are short on the mission, but I'm finding that the weeks are short and the days, well, they're short too! A little too short to be honest; it hit me a couple of days ago how quickly time is going by. I may still have 22 months left, but if they continue to go by at the same apparent rate then this mission will be over soon. I need to work hard & savor every moment of it while it's here.
The work here is great. Finding is really hard though. Most neighborhoods have laws in place that make tracting pretty difficult (for example; "no distribution of printed materials") We've increased our contacting goal to 58 a week, so we'll see how it goes. We have 3 investigators right now, whom I told you about in my E-mail. Hopefully we'll find some more in the next couple of weeks.
My Trainer is awesome. He's from Tegucigalpa Honduras. He's our District Leader & he's a very hard working missionary. President P. has used him a few times to "rescue" an area that previous Elders messed up. He's extremely persistent especially when it comes to contacting referrals & assignments from the Bishop. He goes back each day if they don't answer & or it becomes apparent that they're avoiding us. With as difficult missionary finding is here, working with members & gaining their trust is crucial. Elder C. has also done a very good job of that; the members here really like the missionaries & are actively engaged in missionary work.
I'm also working hard to improve myself. I've set goals to stretch me & help me to gain more confidence. Going up to people & sharing the Gospel is still kind of difficult, but i am getting better at it. It's funny how difficult it is to share with people. First, you have to find them. Most people here are at work most of the day or in their homes. Often we can hear them, but they don't come to the door. If we do get to talk to someone, they usually say "I'm a christian, I'm not interested." It's funny how often we get that. Occasionally someone at best accepts a pass along card though, so that's good!
I'm also setting fitness goals for myself. I'm running & stretching each morning, doing push ups & sit ups, & Shaolin-seu. I'm also carefully watching what I eat for breakfast & lunch since I can't really control dinner. I shoot for 600 cal. for breakfast, 400 for lunch, & that leaves me about 1,000 for dinner. I've lost weight since coming to the field & I'm becoming stronger & gaining far better endurance. 30 minute runs are easy now, so I'll probably start getting up earlier to do a 45-60 minute run & more Shaolin-Seu / Resistance training

They have these awesome warning signs!

I can't help but laugh whenever I see the

electricity monster with the face on it lol

Overall, the mission is teaching me to rely on the Lord, do my part & it is helping me gain a better picture of the man I want to be. I still have a long way to go & many weaknesses to overcome, but I'm doing all I can. The Lord is teaching me here a little & there a little what he wants me to do & be He's giving me a greater knowledge of the relationship that I have with his children. That is my report!
Love, Elder Sweet (by Letter)